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Special Olympics 2018

Before I tell you all about Zack’s amazing day, a health update. This last month has been rough on Zack. His belly has hurt since his surgery and for no discernible reason. He has been consuming a LOT of Tylenol and Motrin. A lot. The good news is that those medicines help with his pain and he has not needed to be seen for anything stronger.

He will tell you that his g-tube still hurts. I am sure that is true, but nothing is visibly wrong with it. Sadly, we think his keloid is growing back and that stinks. In addition, he prolapsed 4 times last week alone. Prolapsing hurts and gets in the way of things Zack likes to do. He does not like that. Last Friday we had an impromptu neighborhood picnic and he did not want to miss it. He was in pain in the shower and mad about missing fun, so he took the handheld shower head and pushed his intestines back into his body. Because why not? That did not feel super great, so I don’t think he will do that again. I hope….

All of the belly pain has meant he has not been eating much. Because Zack’s doctor increased his feeds, he has not been losing weight which is good. But he is not gaining weight at the moment like we had hoped. Thank goodness for feeding tubes.

Enough of the medical stuff….

Zack woke up this morning at 6:20 a.m. ready to get on the school bus, which arrives at 8:27. Why? Today was the Special Olympics and it is one of Zack’s favorite days of the year.

Getting greeted by cheerleaders.

This year, several of Zack’s classmates and their homeroom teacher came along to be his cheering section. As usual, they made some awesome signs, offered lots of encouragement, and were super kind to brave the extremely frosty morning. It was 38balmy degrees and windy as all get out at 9:30 a.m. when they all arrived.

Mrs. Solomon – Zack’s Homeroom Teacher

In addition to Zack’s classmates, Zack had several other people in his cheering section. Mr. Tozer, his coach, has been helping Zack for the past three years. He really knows how to motivate Zack to do his best.

Mr. Tozer coaching Zack before his tennis ball throw.

Zack’s grandma and cousin, Kelsey, were there today as well. Kelsey has such a kind and compassionate heart for Zack. She also helped me corral him and that is a true gift given the amount of energy Z had today. Grandma is one of Zack’s biggest supporters and comes to the Special Olympics every year.

Zack also had his buddy, Dan, there to cheer him on. I’ve written about Dan before. This young man truly has a gift with children and especially kids with special needs. Zack lights up when Dan is around and is always asking when he can see him next. Zack also says that Dan is his best friend because he listens to him and is kind and likes to play Lego. His parents have raised an exceptional young man!Some other fun pictures:

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One thought on “Special Olympics 2018”

I just love going to the games and rooting for Zack. It touches my heart when he is so happy. He has such wonderful supportive parents. Jim brought us all hot chocolate which we definitely needed on this freezing morning.